Chef de Cuisine Tom Allen of Michelin-star restaurant, Dinner, by Heston Blumenthal talks to Emirates Man about his culinary journey so far and his current stint in Dubai.
Can you tell us a bit about your background and how your culinary journey began?
I was born and raised in Cheltenham, a small town in Gloucestershire, England. In 2001, I began my first full-time role working at Lumiere, a small 30-cover restaurant in Cheltenham as Chef de Partie. Working there at such an impressionable age, I learned the values of hard work and dedication and it was during this period that I met Ashley Palmer-Watts, who was at the time the Head Chef of Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck. In 2005, I made the move to The Fat Duck restaurant working with an incredible team where I developed a passion for the many processes of the prestigious three-Michelin-starred kitchen. I then joined Dinner in 2009 assisting Heston Blumenthal and developing the historical dishes that they would open the restaurant with, working alongside food historians and museum curators to bring Heston’s vision to life. In 2019 I then took on the role of Head Chef – Dinner London.
What or who has been your biggest culinary inspiration throughout your career?
Before I started my career, my parents inspired me. My mum was a stay-at-home mum, so we would always cook together in the kitchen and my dad would grow fruit and vegetables in our garden. Cooking at home was a way to bring the family together and is where I formed an emotional connection with food. My main inspiration since being in the culinary world would have to be Heston Blumenthal; he has been my main inspiration. His profound outlook on cooking, along with his approach to food, flavours, and storytelling has always amazed me. I’ve had the opportunity to work directly with Heston for more than 14 years, and this has had a real impact on the way I approach food.
Could you describe your signature style that sets you apart from other chefs?
My style as a chef is twofold, there’s my approach to cooking and discovering dishes from the ages and bringing them to the modern pallet, to how I manage and work with my team, boosting morale and garnering camaraderie. At heart, I am a perfectionist, and every intricate detail must be met to the highest of standards – this is across everything I do. That said, my culinary style is forever evolving and that is a testament to how I have been mentored by such an innovative teacher, that is Heston. It starts with sourcing great quality ingredients and having an amazing team to bring the dishes to life. At Dinner, we always tell the story behind each dish to give it authenticity, that point of difference, and reference. That’s why we search for historical links and work with historians, museum curators, and people who are passionate about food history to help bring all those components together, which we can then use when applying our techniques and methodology to provide a genuine story that that we can deliver to our guests.
What eventually brought you to Dubai?
Before I came to lead Dinner by Heston Blumenthal in Dubai, I was overseeing Dinner in London. Heston had instilled immense trust in me to carry and drive his concept further, from the development of the dishes to overseeing the entire team. Years of dedication and commitment resulted in the opportunity to come to Dubai, to bring the concept here, and to make the restaurant a success. It was thrilling, and equally inspiring to come to an exciting new market like Dubai, which at the time was receiving global recognition for its culinary landscape.
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal was awarded a Michelin star – what does this mean to you?
To receive a star after being open for a very short period of time, we were completely overjoyed at the award and very proud and very honoured to receive the recognition from the MICHELIN Guide. It means a lot to me and the team; our hard work and dedication have been recognized by one of the most prestigious names in the culinary world. It’s given us a major boost to continue pushing our boundaries and raising the bar.
Running a Michelin-star restaurant requires meticulous attention to detail and maintaining exceptional standards. How do you stay on top of that?
We uphold Michelin-star standards through meticulous processes, ways of sourcing products, menu creation and service excellence, but the backbone to the success comes down to the team and passion. I’ve always been passionate about harvesting authentic culture and making sure that we are a collaborative force working towards the same goal. I’ve put in place a regular training session, where the team not only tests their skills but encourages them to be creative and experiment in the kitchen. My team must be happy and motivated because, at the end of the day, the level that we work at is hard enough, and so I want people to wake up in the morning after their days off and feel happy and inspired about coming to work.
In your opinion, what is the hero dish at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal?
Looking at the menu at Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, we celebrate hero dishes from the ages, so it’s hard to choose one. From our starters, the Meat Fruit is the most iconic, there is a sense of playfulness, and it shows that things aren’t quite like what they seem (something Heston would always say). When you finish your dining experience two desserts stand out the most. You have our Tipsy Cake (c.1858), which historically takes the lead from the arrival of the first pineapples to the English court in 1700. It’s served with slices of roasted pineapple that have been slowly roasted on a spit for up to six hours. How it’s roasted is really interesting, our pineapple rotisserie is driven by our ‘The Dinner Escapement’ (clock), which is a breath-taking installation in the centre of the restaurant, its pully system reaches across the dining room and to the kitchen, to turn the rotisserie. Then we have our showstopper, which was inspired by one of the world’s first innovative chefs, the theatrical table side Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream Trolly (c.1901). This is inspired by the work of Agnes B Marshall, a 19th century culinary entrepreneur, also known as ‘the Queen of Ices’ for her work in the development and design of ice cream production and storage.
Finally, what is the future for Chef Tom Allen and Dinner by Heston Blumenthal?
Despite only being open since earlier this year, we have achieved a great deal of success already and this is just the beginning for us. Our focus right now is building the team, enhancing the experience for our guests, and ensuring that we’re driving Dinner forward as one of the world’s most unique and exciting award-winning restaurants. We look to launching and showcasing many more dishes from history, and to story tell them through the language of taste and flavour.
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Images: Supplied by Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
